big-onotation
nounUK /bɪɡ əʊ nəʊˈteɪʃən/
US /bɪɡ oʊ noʊˈteɪʃən/
A way to say how fast a computer program grows when the job gets bigger.
The teacher used big-onotation to show that the sorting program slows down a lot with more numbers.
OTHER MEANINGS
2. A math shorthand that compares how quickly two functions grow.
In math class, big-onotation helped us compare the growth of two formulas.
3. A tool for describing the worst-case speed of an algorithm.
The engineer used big-onotation to explain the worst-case time of the search.
4. A way to ignore small details and focus on the main trend of growth.
With big-onotation, we drop constants and keep only the biggest term.